Roses and Passing
by TARDISTRANSPORT
Summary: Trying to show Amy another sight to kick off her bucket list, one such brings back uncomfortable memories for the Doctor. Talking seems to work as well as dinner with an ex, except there was never something in the first place, and there's no food and... Yeah, let's try talking.


**A/N: **Hi! The first thing I want to say is that this is _not _an AmyxDoctor fic, though it can be interpreted however you want. I just wanted to write a nice friendship fic between the two. Also, well... this might not be very professional of me, but I really have no idea where this fits into the Doctor Who timeline, and that's saying something. So consider it just... there.

Rated **T **for implied themes.

Now without further ado, I hope you enjoy my story! Reviews appreciated :D

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"Now, don't worry, I promise there won't be any more pit stops," the Doctor reassured in what he assumed was a calming voice. "I swear to you, no more flying fire-breathing worms and mean catty Coricollians."

"I hope not," a redheaded woman said, somewhat crossly. She grimaced in the direction of the wardrobe. "My favourite sweater was burnt to a crisp. Then the ashes were torn to shreds."

"Yeah, but your shirt was fine! I don't see why you're complaining!"

Amy looked at him incredulously. "It was ten degrees*!"

"Psh. Wait'll you see the other planets!" he said dismissively. "In the Snowcaps, which is an entire galaxy of subzero weather. A warm day would be negative forty degrees centigrade!" he smiled goofily at her. "Want to go there next?"

Amy felt herself starting to smile along with him. "I thought you'd never ask."

He raised a finger. "Though, before we do that…" he flicked down a lever. "I have to show you something marvelous."

The TARDIS seemed to tremble in expectation and launched off the planet full of fire-breathing worms and Coricollians. One of the Coricollians that had been sleeping next the TARDIS gave a startled yowl and pawed after the retreating blue box.

"Where are we going?" Amy asked expectantly. "The far reaches of the Andromeda galaxy or to the distant future, maybe?" she said teasingly and sidled uncomfortably close to the Doctor, peering at his controls over his shoulder.

His body tensed, and he took in a deep breath. "Amy," he said with a paternal gentleness. He stared into her eyes and apparently controlled the TARDIS perfectly without looking. He gave her a funny little smile and shook his head. Then he moved to the other side of the TARDIS, apparently to find a lever, breaking the spell.

"Right then," he said loudly, as if nothing had ever happened. "The place I'm taking you is the most stunning place in the surrounding five and a half galaxies!"

Amy was taken aback, and didn't pay attention to the Doctor giving her a suspiciously long and detailed explanation of what he said was either very 'sirius', a 'big dipper' or a flying interstellar space phoenix. One of the three.

"Why?" Amy asked him when he paused to take a breath.

"Oh, it's because the dust particles collide after millions of years-"

"You _know_ what I mean," she said, the hurt bleeding into her voice. She turned to meet him and fired the question burning at her tongue. "Why?"

The Doctor looked away. He took a deep breath and faced her again. "I'm very old you know," he said quietly.

"That's the same excuse you always use," she fired back. "If you're going to keep making them, at _least _make them varied!"

"I don't think you understand the implications of it," he said, infuriatingly calm. "I am nine hundred and fifty-seven years old. And you are under the influence of hormones and emotions right after we escaped from the hands of Death. To take advantage of you then would be like taking the choice away from you."

"What if it's a choice freely given now?" Amy asked, her eyes narrowing.

"I'm an old man. I can be patient. I'm not the one you'll end up with, trust me, Pond, my Amelia Pond." He winked, and gave her that warm and quirky little smile she loved. "I'm the Doctor."

He literally dove back to his twiddling about the TARDIS with a vengeance. Amy looked at him, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. She felt better, but just a little.

"Oh!" The Doctor popped his head above the console. "And when you find him, I'll give you lot one hell of a honeymoon, on me!" He swiveled at the door clumsily, pointing dramatically at his door, knocking off one of his flimsy console switches. "Aaand here we are!"

He looked at Amy, grinning from ear to ear while holding his elbow, trying to hide a wince. "Why don't you open the doors?" he asked mischievously. "This should be on your bucket list! And you're about to knock it so far out of the list that it's hovering somewhere near the second star to the right!"

Amy couldn't hold back her smile any longer. Though still feeling a bit put out, she walked towards the doors, albeit cautiously. Last time they landed like this, they got abducted and held prisoner by cat-people.

Behind her, the Doctor muttered a quiet, "Ow." Amy didn't know whether to laugh or feel a bit sorry. She chose to laugh; after all, laughter is the best medicine.

When she opened the doors, there were no cat people. When she opened the doors, she saw something absolutely stunning. She gasped, pleasure blossoming on her face.

Outside the doors were wondrous swirls and ribbons of every colour imaginable. The floated across space, and they mixed into gorgeous shades of the deepest blue, the brightest red and a tropical green. A band of white light reflected across them, and splintered off into more colours, faded at the end. There was one nebulous shape, though, that always took the form of a pink rose.

"This… this is _amazing_," Amy breathed in utter admiration.

The Doctor had walked up silently next to her, smiling faintly. "I've only ever shown this to one other person, you know."

Amy looked over to him, awed. "Who?"

"Rose," he said, his voice turning slightly husky. He cleared his throat, and started again. "She… She got me out of a rut during her time here. And I…" he broke off, looking away from Amy.

She blinked. At first in realization, then slower in understanding. "Where is she now?" she asked gently.

"She… She's in an alternate universe now. Very happy, that one. I'm sure she's having the time of her life." He looked as if he would simultaneously burst into tears and relieved he was telling.

Amy nodded, first in understanding, then in resolution. She gave the Doctor a firm but innocent hug. He stiffened at first, but eventually relaxed. He sagged against her, his shoulders shaking once. Something wet dripped onto her shoulder.

Slowly, gingerly, he grabbed her wrists and gently lowered her arms, eyes bright and smiling. She felt herself smiling along with him; her old Raggedy Man was back.

"Now then!" he said excitedly, turning away. "In the regions around the Snowcap's Alpinion Mountains, once you're at the top, the view from up there is absolutely, positively stunning!"

'Will there be cat-people there too?" Amy asked jokingly.

The Doctor gave her a cheerfully mysterious glance, looking quite feline himself. "There's cat-people everywhere!" He flipped down a lever.

The TARDIS, its lights blinking happily, flying through the stars and gleefully going to their next adventure, though curiously veering off in the wrong direction…

* * *

*: In Celsius.


End file.
